HSBC starts China rural operations in central Hubei province

AmyOr

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- HSBC Holdings PLC
HBC, -2.10%
said Thursday its rural banking unit in China has started operations in central Hubei province, marking the first expansion by a foreign bank into the country's agricultural region.

The move is part of China's plan to expedite rural economic development by expanding domestic and international financial institutions' access to the rural market.

The Hubei province-based lender also provides trade finance and transactional banking services for export-oriented rural enterprises, and plans to expand into business-related loans to farmers next year, it added.

Vincent Cheng, chairman of HSBC's Asian unit, said the operation will help the bank unlock new opportunities in the largely untapped rural market.

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